Join the Six Ingredient Challenge hosted by Hobo Mama and Anktangle!We're on a six-week path to eat more whole foods, guided by one simple rule: Buy foods with six ingredients or fewer. And we're blogging about our journey on the way.
This week we're answering the question: What new foods or recipes have you tried or discovered?
You can see all the responses to this question on February 21 at the link-up post.
To join in the Six Ingredient Challenge anytime during the six weeks, visit the sign-up page for a list of posts and to link up!
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Since I already had the menu planned with mostly easy and all well-known recipes, I really didn't expect to have any new food or recipes. But I've never had much luck making good pork chops and knew I needed to find a recipe to try, so this was good inspiration to look for something different instead of doing the same old thing.
I found this recipe and since I still have bread crumbs left from before the start of the challenge, I didn't buy anything outside of the rules! I did change 3 things - I left out the parsley, I browned them using coconut oil instead of olive oil and I "double-dipped" the pork chops, first in the egg mix, then the breadcrumbs, then the eggs and finally the breadcrumbs again.
Outcome...
AMAZING! They were flavorful, moist and tender! Alex finished his whole plate in less than 10 minutes (never happens!) and Ethan followed close behind. Jack even liked the meat. Definitely making these again.
What else did I buy that was new to us? Hmm. Honestly not much. I did buy a fresh mango for Jack to try and some fresh sugar-snap pea "packs" with ranch for Alex to take in his lunch, as well as some pears, which I have bought before and made puree for Jack several months ago but these are for E and Alex to take for snack or with lunch. Alex tried the snap peas today but said he didn't really like them "raw".
OH, I forgot! I also made "pop". I found the recipe in one of my cookbooks, The Kid-Friendly ADHD & Autism Cookbook, that we bought back when we were trying a gluten-free diet to see if E had any digestive problems from gluten and if it would help with his frustrations, anxiety, etc. We saw some change but after going back to a "typical" diet, honestly we haven't seen a big difference. Although he has allergic shiners (dark circles under his eyes) that did seem to go away, as well as his skin cleared up on his cheeks, and those came back at some point in the last 2 years. I've been considering having him retested for gluten intolerance, because at the time he was tested the first time, he was already off of gluten for several weeks and I'm not sure we got an accurate reading. But that's a whole other topic...
So back to the pop I made. All you need is 1 liter of seltzer water and frozen juice concentrate and possible some fresh lemon and lime juice. I could only find a 2 liter seltzer water so I used that.
Recipe:
1 liter seltzer water
4-6 Tablespoons frozen juice concentrate, thawed
(they recommend using white grape juice and a splash of lemon and lime juice)
After dumping a small amount of seltzer water out, carefully and slowly pour juice concentrate into bottle, taking care not to cause too much fizz. It WILL cause a mess if you go to fast. Trust me!
I used a 2 liter seltzer water and 12 T white grape juice concentrate. Alex loves it, E somewhat liked it but doesn't really guzzle many drinks ;) and Jas thought it tasted to much like plain seltzer and said maybe to add a little more juice next time. I personally can't stand flavored water, or flavored seltzer, not sure why, so to be honest, I didn't even try it. Plus I'm big on cola-type pops, especially Pepsi (throwback is my fave) so yeah.
Oh yeah, and I flavored some more yogurt at home. Not really a new recipe, or even a recipe at all, but I just take organic, whole milk, plain yogurt and add an organic jelly (one that is preferably just fruit and maybe a touch of sugar) until flavored to taste. All the boys and Jas liked it, and this time I used the Cascadian Farm blueberry fruit spread. I can't get over the "sourness" of yogurt so again I won't eat it, but it's nice to find a healthier alternative to the gogurts and pre-flavored, ultra-sweetened store bought yogurts that everybody else will eat.
By the way, even though it's not really new food for me, I have eaten more fruits and veggies in the last couple of weeks! I even stepped on the scale for the first time in several weeks and was pleasantly surprised to see I've dropped 6 1/2lbs! 181, down from 187.5, since the beginning of the year. That's even with not exercising! I needed to share ;)
OH, I forgot! I also made "pop". I found the recipe in one of my cookbooks, The Kid-Friendly ADHD & Autism Cookbook, that we bought back when we were trying a gluten-free diet to see if E had any digestive problems from gluten and if it would help with his frustrations, anxiety, etc. We saw some change but after going back to a "typical" diet, honestly we haven't seen a big difference. Although he has allergic shiners (dark circles under his eyes) that did seem to go away, as well as his skin cleared up on his cheeks, and those came back at some point in the last 2 years. I've been considering having him retested for gluten intolerance, because at the time he was tested the first time, he was already off of gluten for several weeks and I'm not sure we got an accurate reading. But that's a whole other topic...
So back to the pop I made. All you need is 1 liter of seltzer water and frozen juice concentrate and possible some fresh lemon and lime juice. I could only find a 2 liter seltzer water so I used that.
Recipe:
1 liter seltzer water
4-6 Tablespoons frozen juice concentrate, thawed
(they recommend using white grape juice and a splash of lemon and lime juice)
After dumping a small amount of seltzer water out, carefully and slowly pour juice concentrate into bottle, taking care not to cause too much fizz. It WILL cause a mess if you go to fast. Trust me!
I used a 2 liter seltzer water and 12 T white grape juice concentrate. Alex loves it, E somewhat liked it but doesn't really guzzle many drinks ;) and Jas thought it tasted to much like plain seltzer and said maybe to add a little more juice next time. I personally can't stand flavored water, or flavored seltzer, not sure why, so to be honest, I didn't even try it. Plus I'm big on cola-type pops, especially Pepsi (throwback is my fave) so yeah.
Oh yeah, and I flavored some more yogurt at home. Not really a new recipe, or even a recipe at all, but I just take organic, whole milk, plain yogurt and add an organic jelly (one that is preferably just fruit and maybe a touch of sugar) until flavored to taste. All the boys and Jas liked it, and this time I used the Cascadian Farm blueberry fruit spread. I can't get over the "sourness" of yogurt so again I won't eat it, but it's nice to find a healthier alternative to the gogurts and pre-flavored, ultra-sweetened store bought yogurts that everybody else will eat.
By the way, even though it's not really new food for me, I have eaten more fruits and veggies in the last couple of weeks! I even stepped on the scale for the first time in several weeks and was pleasantly surprised to see I've dropped 6 1/2lbs! 181, down from 187.5, since the beginning of the year. That's even with not exercising! I needed to share ;)
Sounds like a fun week! It's always a challenge to get multiple people in a family to like the same things, huh? :) We always feel like we're making separate meals & snacks for each person.
ReplyDeleteThose pork chops sound delicious! I haven't had pork chops in years but loved them whenever my mom made them. Need to put those on the list but figure out a bread crumb substitution since we don't have any (darn).
We've tried making our own pop, too, with varying success. I'm a total wuss about seltzer flavor — way too strong and bitter for me — but I had some joy making a concentrated juice syrup (basically simmering down juice + sugar — I know, really healthy, ha ha) and then adding a little at a time to the seltzer till it tasted right. I just did it glass by glass so I wouldn't make too much of a mess. But, yeah, I'm a cola girl, too, and I've yet to taste a convincing cola substitute.
My husband loves doing the yogurt + jam thing. That's a good tip.
Thanks for sharing! :)
It is difficult sometimes, but we've been pretty lucky that the boys will at least try a bite or two of most things. :)
DeleteI bet you could make a seasoned flour mix that would work in a similar manner. I will probably try that next time, as I used almost all the bread crumbs up this time, and I'm probably going to use the rest for our fish "sticks" next Friday.
That's exactly what it is, bitter! I couldn't think of how to describe it when Jason asked why I didn't try it. I bet that syrup was pretty tasty!
Pork chops sound yummy; I'll have to try making some soon! I really like the juice/seltzer combo in place of soda, but then I'm not a huge fan of soda in the first place. My favorite combo is a cranberry blend (cran-raspberry, usually) with seltzer and a few extra splashes of lime juice. Mmm!
ReplyDeleteOh, I might have to try that. The boys like cranberry juice sometimes, so I bet they would be willing to try it!
DeleteTo be honest, I've never really liked pork chops and I don't remember ever having them before we were married, but this recipe definitely changed my opinion!